´óÏó´«Ã½

Perry's 67, Angel Cabrera's 68 to get to eight under, to haul himself back into it at four under, and Sergio Garcia's 67, also to get to four under, were some of the highlights. Good to see 2004 Open champion Todd Hamilton back, too, with a 70 for six under. Maybe he is about to show that his 2004 Open triumph was more than just a very large flash in the pan.

Phil Mickelson said he needed fireworks and got at least sparklers with a 68 to edge back to three under. Very much back in the hunt. "I think the goal [of the club] is to make it tough on Saturday and then try to let guys light it up on Sunday," he said.

Tiger Woods, at two under and tied 19th after a grinding level-par 72, is still thereabouts, but history is not on his side, though as we know he has a knack of rewriting the history books. No player from outside the top five after 36 holes has gone on to win in the last 10 years, while Nick Faldo's climb from 10th at halfway in 1990 is the best comeback in the last 22 years. Woods will also have to beat the margin of six strokes that he clawed back to win in 2005, the most since Jack Nicklaus's six-shot turnaround in 1986. The biggest 36-hole comeback ever at the Masters was eight shots, by Jack Burke Jr in 1956.

Padraig Harrington, meanwhile, will need to have regrouped by the time he goes out on Saturday. He was handed a one-shot penalty when his ball moved in the wind after he addressed it on 15. Out of all golf's pedantic rules, this one ranks very highly in the nonsensical stakes.

Harrington seemed to have become the embodiment of taking the rough with the smooth in his victories in the last two major championships, but cracks seemed to be appearing in his Zen-like state after Friday's round. "I can't take another day like that where half a dozen putts that I was taking out of the hole, missed," he said. "You can absorb some of it during a tournament but at this stage I don't think I can."

Northern Ireland's rising star Rory McIlroy will just be breathing a sigh of relief that he is playing at the weekend after facing disqualification for kicking sand after leaving his ball in the bunker on 18. He was hauled back to the clubhouse on Friday night and reviewed tapes with officials, .

It was another sobering lesson for the 19-year-old, who dropped five shots in the last three holes after reaching the 16th on a very threatening four under. Before the 19-year-old tees off on Saturday, 100 lines on "I must never let my guard down at Augusta" wouldn't go amiss.

Another late curveball for the weekend players was the torrential downpour and hail accompanying severe thunderstorms on Friday night which will have softened the course for the early starters, rendering greens more receptive but also making it play longer.

Saturday itself is set to be sunny with moderate westerly winds which could dry it out for the afternoon. It may prove to be a tale of two courses. But while shooting low would help, not shooting high must be the goal.

Augusta's 18th green, Friday evening - A glorious chapter in golf finally closed here when Gary Player retired from major championships after missing the cut in his 52nd Masters.

The and was one of the big three, alongside Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, who dominated golf from the end of the 1950s to the 1970s. He is one of only five men to win a career Grand Slam of all four majors, winning nine majors in all to place fourth on the all-time list behind Nicklaus (18), Tiger Woods (14) and Walter Hagen (11). Player won Masters Green Jackets in 1961, 1974 and 1978.

At 73, Player has not been competitive in majors for some time now, and cynics say he hung on deliberately just to clinch one more victory over old rival Palmer by beating his record of 50 Masters appearances. But he has added a rich layer to golf's history and folklore.

Player deserved to go when he was ready and joins Palmer, 78, who played his last Masters in 2004, and Nicklaus, 69, who bowed out in 2005, on the sidelines. His popularity stemmed from his personable nature yet fierce competitive spirit. For a man small in stature, he possessed a huge heart. He was the first non-American to win at Augusta when he held off a charge from defending champion Palmer to win by a stroke. "I'd like to think that I've played with tenacity, never given up, never on a single shot," he said.

The Augusta crowd took to him immediately, cementing the bond with two more Green Jackets. "I have never ever encompassed having love to the extent that was shown to me here," he said in a tearful news conference after his final round.

, who adheres to a firm set of values and a strict regime of physical fitness. And he also coined one of the iconic sporting phrases, "The harder I practice, the luckier I get."

Player was delighted to this week before struggling to an 83 on Friday. But it wasn't really about the golf. It was always going to be a farewell tour, a chance to say goodbye and thanks to the fans, and let them do the same. "What touched me most is that in 36 holes I got a standing ovation on every hole," he said.

Luke Donald partnered Player this week. The Englishman was also in the group when Jack Nicklaus retired at the Open Championship at St Andrews in 2005. "It was a huge honour to be paired with Gary," said Donald. "I am not sure why they keep picking me, but maybe I am the nice guy and won't get in their way. That 18th hole took a lot out of Mr Player and a lot of emotions, with all his experiences and emotions, came flooding back. He played admirably. What a true gentleman and one of the greats of golf. A great ambassador for the game."

, when he was greeted by his family and fellow South Africans Trevor Immelman, Rory Sabbatini, Richard Sterne and Louis Oosthuizen, who were accompanied by their partners. "I was doing fine until I got to 18 and then I got very choked up, when I saw my family and everyone else," said Player.

I was also lucky enough to be on the 18th at St Andrews when Nicklaus retired. Though I'd say that was a much bigger moment for me as Nicklaus was my hero, Player is of a very similar stature. I interviewed him once on the phone ahead of the World Match Play at Wentworth. He was generous, patient and polite, remembering my name instantly and using it throughout, even though he has given thousands of interviews over the years.

He hasn't been afraid to be outspoken in his time, and claimed at the Open at Carnoustie in 2007 that , though he didn't provide names to back it up. In his final news conference here, he criticised some athletes for not giving enough interviews. But when some pressmen sniffed another line and asked 'Who?' Player wisely said he was talking generally across all sports and moved on.

He might be fond of preaching the message that exercise is the cure for most modern ills, or telling you that he is the most-travelled athlete on the planet. But he will also tell you about the extensive charity work he does, especially with black children in South Africa. A great man, as well as a great player. Enjoy retirement Gary.